Additional safeguards that may be included in a social and behavioral study may include:

The practice of removing all direct identifiers from the data as soon as possible is crucial in social and behavioral studies, particularly when working with sensitive populations such as prisoners. This action significantly enhances participant confidentiality and reduces the risk of identifying individuals from the data. By anonymizing the data, researchers protect participants’ privacy, thereby mitigating potential harm that might arise from disclosure of personal information.

Safeguarding participants’ identities is a fundamental ethical requirement in research, especially involving vulnerable populations. Anonymization supports trust between the researcher and participants, which is essential for honest and accurate data collection. This step ensures compliance with ethical guidelines and institutional review board standards, promoting responsible research practices.

In contrast, keeping raw data indefinitely can pose risks to participant confidentiality, sharing data with third parties may lead to unauthorized access to sensitive information, and maintaining physical copies of all interviews can also increase the risk of compromising participant anonymity if proper safeguards aren't in place.